Isaiah Thomas to make season debut against Blazers

Field Level Media/Reuters

Cleveland Cavaliers guard Isaiah Thomas reacts against the Washington Wizards during the second half at Capital One Arena. Brad Mills, USA TODAY Sports/Reuters

Cleveland point guard Isaiah Thomas will make his Cavaliers debut on Tuesday at home against the Portland Trail Blazers, coach Tyronn Lue told reporters Monday.

Lue said that Thomas will have a minutes limit while coming off the bench, and that he will not face his former team the following night when the Cavs play at the Boston Celtics to begin a five-game road trip.

Thomas underwent hip surgery over the offseason, and has not played for the Cavs since being acquired from the Celtics on Aug. 22 in the deal that sent Kyrie Irving to Boston.

The team has long targeted January as for Thomas' return, and he has steadily increased his practice work over the past several weeks. That included being assigned to the team's G League affiliate, the Canton Charge, on Dec. 21 to participate in five-on-five scrimmages.

Thomas, 28, is scheduled to become a free agent this summer. The 5-foot-9 guard is coming off a career year last season with Boston in which he averaged a personal-best 28.9 points on 46.3 percent shooting along with 5.9 assists over 76 games.